believe the obama administration will propose roughly $50 billion in relief, far short of what the states want, $82 billion. >> is there that kind of money lying around? >> certainly not that kind of money lying around. it's such a complex time right now we're dealing with a host of issues. we're going over the fiscal cliffs. >> senator susan collins are facing budget cuts they would like to pay for the storm cleanup. the uncertain fate of the relief money comes little more than a month after the jaw dropping pre-rel pre-election image of president obama and governor christie shoulder to shoulder, a time when he promised to help victims quickly. >> i want you to cut through red tape. i want you to cut through bureaucracy. there's no excuse for inaction at this point. >> the white house said the president remains committed. >> there's no question what the president saw on staten island that enormous suffering continues. that's why we're looking at states and localities to continue the effort to assist in the recovery. >> reporter: a top congressional aide tells cnn lawmakers are waiting to